NBA Trade Rumors: Knicks Willing To Part Ways With Courtney Lee And Four Other Players

Rumors and speculations are swirling around the New York Knicks who are reportedly willing to trade Courtney Lee and four other veteran players to free salary cap space to help them pursue big names in the free agency market.

After trading Carmelo Anthony, the Knicks revealed their plan to build around Kristaps Porzingis, who is now considered as the new face of the franchise. However, the deal with the Oklahoma City Thunder didn’t give them salary cap flexibility. With their goal to immediately return to title contention, the Knicks are eyeing to sign superstars who can play alongside Porzingis.

According to Ian Begley of ESPN, the Knicks could theoretically increase their cap space by trading some of their veteran players. These include Courtney Lee, Joakim Noah, Lance Thomas, Kyle O’Quinn, and Enes Kanter.

“Trading Kanter this season could create space; Kanter has the $18.6 million player option for next summer. The Knicks also could move Joakim Noah, Courtney Lee and Thomas — all of whom are under contract for the next three seasons. Noah is owed $55 million over the next three seasons; Lee is owed $36.6 in that span; Thomas is owed $21.3 million,” Begley said.

Former Knicks President Phil Jackson signed Courtney Lee and Joakim Noah with the belief that they could help Anthony bring the team back to title contention. Unfortunately, the Knicks’ “Super Team” didn’t live up to expectations and even failed to enter the Eastern Conference playoffs. As Begley noted, the Knicks are willing to move Lee for the right offer but it remains questionable if they can find a trade partner for Noah and Kanter.

Since the arrival of Enes Kanter, rumors started to swirl that the Knicks plans to move one of their big men. New York will surely want to see Kanter play first before deciding whether he should stay or leave. This leaves Joakim Noah, Kyle O’Quinn, and Lance Thomas as potential trade candidates.

Begley describes Noah’s contract as one of the most “untradeable” in the NBA. Also, his performance has tremendously gone down since suffering multiple injuries. If they fail to move him, they could waive him via the stretch provision. This could help them save $11 million in cap space in the 2018-19 season.

However, there would be a $7.5 million cap hit in years three to five. Meanwhile, several NBA teams have reportedly expressed interest in acquiring O’Quinn and Thomas weeks before the preseason started. Bryan Kalbrosky of HoopsHype believes that both big men are expendable in New York.

If the Knicks fail to trade at least one of the players mentioned, they will need to wait until 2020 to make a huge impact in free agency. New York obviously needs to add superstars on their team if they want to return to title contention. Also, their performance in the 2017-18 NBA season will play a vital role in their plan to recruit big names in the free agency market.

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